On Thursday, the Monroe County Courthouse expansion project became a reality with officials gathering for the groundbreaking.

The expansion will add the space needed to have more courtrooms and judge’s chambers, as well as making space for all the departments that work out of the courthouse.

Commissioners’ Chairman Sharon Laverdure said it will create a much safer working environment.

The cost of the project is still to be determined. Laverdure said, “We can’t really say a total cost because we are still working on contracts for the interior as well as and other contracts, so I would rather just say at this point it is a multimillion dollar expansion project.”

Next week the demolition will begin on the old PNC building that county officials discovered had asbestos inside.

The original courthouse was built in 1890. Then 44 years later in 1934 an identically sized addition was built. Both structures were added to the National Register of Historic Places on April 18, 1979, the same year an expansion was added to the two standing structures.

The original historic courthouse, with its 1893 courtroom and 1930s courtroom, will also have upgrades. Concrete sidewalks and retaining walls on the east side will be removed and replaced with lawn, restoring the courthouse’s setting on Monroe Street to its original condition.

The current historic courthouse and annex do not meet modern courthouse space standards.

Brdaric Demolition Company, out of New York state, has been hired to do the work, and according to the commissioner, the demolition will take about one week.

The project is slated to be finished in 30 months.